Hay equipment

[newbee83]

Hello everyone, I am looking for some help and advice.I was just left 35-40 acres by my family and I am looking to start haying it next year I have a few horses and I am trying to save some money. I just bought a Case 870 tractor (87 HP) but now I am trying to buy some hay equipment. I dont have alot of money at all but I am going to try to make it work.I need to know what I should buy (Mowers , balers, etc.) to make hay for myself. I just want the bare minimums for now until I get on my feet.I live in upstate NY if that helps.All advice is greatly appreciated.Thank You


PS I have a brush hog to (some people say i can use it for haying others say absolutly not help here as well )

[zzvyb6]

Greetings and Welcome.

Now is a good time to go to Craigslist.com and post a wanted add looking for a 9' sickl bar mower conditioner, a bar rake, an older JD or NH baler, and a couple of hay wagons. All this ought to be well under $4000. Maybe $3000 as a package. Second option would be to go on shares with a local farmer who will take half the hay for himself and half for you. 35 acres is a lot of hay for a few horses, so plan on selling half of it yourself. That may even pay for the equipment in the first year or two. Lastly, there ought to be quite a few farm auctions coming up in your area. Start working your budget up to see if any auction equippment can be had. You will have all winter to fix it up and test it out.

[newbee83]

I didnt think of that I have a local farmer who I buy hay from who hays the land that is adjacent to mine I shoudl see if he would do some kind of share option....I just dont want to feel like I am stepping on anybodys toes if you know what I mean. I have been looking online for auctions but cant come up with any..DO you knwo of a site or where else I could look thanks for the quick response.

[flusher]

Originally Posted by newbee83

Hello everyone, I am looking for some help and advice.I was just left 35-40 acres by my family and I am looking to start haying it next year I have a few horses and I am trying to save some money. I just bought a Case 870 tractor (87 HP) but now I am trying to buy some hay equipment. I dont have alot of money at all but I am going to try to make it work.I need to know what I should buy (Mowers , balers, etc.) to make hay for myself. I just want the bare minimums for now until I get on my feet.I live in upstate NY if that helps.All advice is greatly appreciated.Thank You


PS I have a brush hog to (some people say i can use it for haying others say absolutly not help here as well )

I've spent about $5000 on used haying equipment for use on my 10 acre place. The expensive itiems include $2K for a Massey Ferguson 124 two-twine square baler, $800 for a 10-ft JD 350 bar rake, $600 for a 10-ft cultipacker, $600 for a 13-ft Minneapolis Moline 1300 tandem wheel disc, $550 for an MF 41 sicklebar mower. Other stuff like a 7-ft offset disc, a 7-ft tandem disc (both pull type) cost and two MM P3-6 10-ft wide grain drills cost less than $500 total. My tractor is a 2008 Mahindra 5525 (54 hp engine, 45 hp pto, 2WD, gear tranny).

Do you intend to plant a crop or just harvest the native grasses?

Some folks use brush hogs for mowing hay by removing one of the sides of the mower. I've never tried it myself, but it apparently works--somewhat.

[newbee83]

There is where I run into another problem, I am not sure if I need to crop plant because it is growing timothy naturally, i may have to in the future one i start haying it instead of just mowing it. So I need all those different types of equipment to make hay?? I was hoping a mower a rake and a baler but I am clueless.Thanks for your help

[jayste]

If all you're going to do is cut it for hay with the existing grass then yes, a mower(cutter), rake and baler are all you would need if you're going to do it yourself. What others are saying is that if in the future if you're going to maintain or improve the pasture then you might need the other implements. These would be the cultipacker, fertilizer spreader, drill and maybe a spray rig.

Jay

[newbee83]

OK thanks, If you dont mind me asking (which I hope you dont) I have no clue what a cultipacker or a drill is actually used for . I am new to this and all education is GREATLY appreciated, also I see alot of farmers tilling there fields this time of year should I do this if I dotn plan on seeding this year?

[zzvyb6]

Then in your case, I would highly recommend talking to your neighbor about all this. If you can manage the time, I suggest you ask if you can get to help him next June with square bale haying. That means hangin out with him when the process begins. Learn how to operate a mower. The science of raking. And the magic of baling; including all the frustration with weather, missed knots, broken needles, flat tires, run out of twine, no help, repairs out in the field at night, lousy customers, bounced checks, and happy horses.

You can read a book on it or get the real experience and also make a lifetime friend.

You have plenty of tractor, use the mower you have now to chop down the field so that all you will be cutting next year is green grass.

[newbee83]

I just was offered a NH 479 Haybine , from Craigslist the guy said he would sell it to me for 500 bucks out in VT.Does anyone know anything about this piece or what i should look for when i go to look at it? He says it is in good working order he just used it this past summer he just is getting out of the buiness. Also is my tractor able to pull this without any problems?Thanks Again

[patrick_g]

For the acreage involved I wouldn't hay it myself under most circumstances due to overhead of all the equipment. But then I hire folks to bale my place every year paying $20 per round bale (about 1100 lbs per bale)

Put a pencil to it. What can you hire it done for, how much to buy hay, can you get it baled on the halves? Will you make over a dollar an hour for your time?

Pat